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One of the best adaptations from page to screen I’ve seen. You definitely have to be in the mood for a period piece, but the acting is superb. There are a few minor changes from the story, mostly in the way of additions, but the movie stays true. In moving the story to the screen, […]
This was my first exposure to “The Dead” and I found it quite powerful and moving. So far in Dubliners there has been much bitterness and frustration with only glimpses of the humanity underneath. In “The Dead,” the emphasis has been reversed. Since it would be easy to write a piece as long as the […]
The Wikipedia entry on Parnell gives details on his life, accomplishments and failures, background information helpful for “Ivy Day in the Committee Room” and his inclusion in Joyce’s work. I did not really connect with “Ivy Day in the Committee Room” the first time I read it. Who cares about political banter a century later? […]
Continuing the summary at a clip that makes it difficult to write about everything (Joyce is especially rich on imagery and symbolism), I’ll carry on with major items from these stories. The average age of the main character(s) in each story increases as the novel unfolds. Many of the same themes that I mentioned in […]
The online text for Dubliners can be found at Project Gutenberg. More detail than almost anyone needs, but this page has a link to an online concordance for Dubliners. I just discovered The Modern Word site. Their resources for James Joyce can be found here. In addition to some useful links for the book, they include […]
There is a trove of resources about Joyce available online, yet most of them focus on Ulysses or Finnegans Wake. I’ve listed only a handful below: Texts available through Project Gutenberg Joyce’s Wikipedia entry Fordham University’s Joyce Studies Annual (formerly published by The University of Texas): The James Joyce Scholars’ Collection, through the University of […]
A place for all the Sons and Lovers posts: The text for Sons and Lovers can be found at Project Gutenberg. Some online DH Lawrence resources Sons and Lovers: Chapters 1 – 6 discussion Sons and Lovers: Chapters 7 – 10 discussion Sons and Lovers: Chapters 11 – 15 discussion Sons and Lovers (2003 TV […]
This movie might be a little harder to find for some since the DVD has not been released in the U.S. (or at least that regional format). Fortunately many inexpensive DVD players now can play any regional format. The casting for the movie was perfect: Trevor Howard as Walter Morel Dean Stockwell as Paul Morel […]
I generally liked the movie while I viewed it, yet as soon as it was over I began to feel disappointed. Unfortunately, this is the complete opposite my feelings about the book. First the good things—the scenery and music are beautiful. Since Lawrence was so focused on nature, I don’t think the movie could possibly […]
A few words on the last chapters as well as comments on themes and topics from the book: The relationship between mother and sons (particularly Paul and William) is unhealthy and troubling in a much different way than I was expecting from the reputation of the book. The dependence the sons have on her as […]
I’m beginning to like the book more, but it doesn’t mean I like the characters any better. This section covers the first half of Part II—Paul at work, his relationships with Miriam and Clara, and the declining health of his mother. There are two quotes in this section that seem to be a key to […]
Sons and Lovers has been a challenge for me. I love Lawrence’s style and find the book quite powerful, but every one of the characters disgust me so much that at times I don’t look forward to reading it. Part One (Chapters 1 through 6) covers up through the eldest son William’s death and Paul’s […]
There is a lot of online resources available for Lawrence. There are only a few, but many of these links have additional resource links: Lawrence’s Wikipedia entry Lawrence’s online works from Project Gutenberg and Project Gutenberg of Australia The LibriVox recording of The Rainbow A book review of the biography DH Lawrence: The Life of […]
The text for The Good Soldier can be found at Project Gutenberg. I have rounded up a few online resources on Ford Madox Ford. Since The Good Soldier doesn’t really lend itself to posts on the sections as you read through them, I approached writing about the book with the following topics: The Good Soldier: […]
The credits for The Good Soldier, produced by Granada Television, can be found at IMDB. I remember seeing this when it originally aired on Masterpiece Theatre and enjoying it immensely. I didn’t realize it would be 25 years later before I read the book. The movie runs very true to the book despite the difficult […]
One theme in Ford’s book is the inadequacy or irrelevance of social and religious institutions in the modern (at that time) world. That there is a moral and social shortfall is hammered home by his use of August 4th (the day Britain declared war on Germany in World War I) for all important dates in […]
I covered quite a bit on Dowell’s self-deception and moral blindness. The inability to face the truth or make any sense of events is his personal failing. That Dowell elevates his personal failures to not being able to understand the world or judge another’s character does not mean Ford agrees with him. I think Ford […]
“I have, I am aware, told this story in a very rambling way so that it may be difficult for anyone to find their path through what may be a sort of maze. I cannot help it.” This quote, from the start of Part IV, sums up the method quite well. John Dowell has undertaken […]
John DowellA Quaker from Philadelphia, John Dowell is the direct narrator of the story. His family came from England with William Penn, settling in Pennsylvania. He controls property in Philadelphia and is able to maintain a wealthy lifestyle. John prides himself on being attentive and nursing. Florence (Hurlbird) DowellFlorence is a Protestant who lives with […]
The Good Soldier does not lend itself very well to discussion by chapters or parts, I’ll approach it in a different manner. I will start with a chronology, discuss the main characters, cover themes and motifs, review the 1981 TV movie version, and throw in anything else that makes sense in covering this challenging book. […]